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Good Research Requires a Good Questionnaire.

This is one of those threads where listeners like to discuss which songs sound good and bad on stations.
And station owners like to explain that they already have data on songs and don't need to hear listener suggestions.

But, it's just listeners here talking theoretically about songs. They are only conversing. It cause consternation among station owners, who have already tested the songs. But, in the end, it is just social conversation.

Some stations have a text number so that listeners can send text with song requests. Those are songs that are already on the playlist.
 
In my case, since my finances are limited and we have few choices to get music from, I have to play whatever I can get my hands on. It's true that I'm usually late adding the new songs but I do the best I can. Not too worried if the song(s) are popular or not so popular. I let the music play, speak for itself and chips fall where they may.​

Dan <><
 
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Stations that do what is called an AMT, "Auditorium Music Testing" (now mostly done online) know rather precisely which songs will be disliked and how much and by what subsets (age, gender, ethnicity) of the audience sample. They then determine the minimum scores on each quality are acceptable, and the songs that pass all those criteria are played.

Lots of songs a station is not currently playing are also tested to see if there are songs that can now be included due to the aging-out of some listeners and the aging-in of others.

In scheduling songs in Selector or MusicMaster, the songs are coded so that ones that are the least liked by each group don't play too close to each other.

That is a very simplified view of a music test, but you should see that you can't say, "they should be playing 'Marvelous Song by the Stinkers'" because it is highly probable that they tested it and it is now a stiff.

Stations don't need a listener suggesting songs on a message board. They already have extensive data on every song you might come up with.
I am curious as to how a station does poorly in the ratings. Usually if I notice a station playing something like Party Like a Rockstar that's not a rhythmic station, sure enough...down its ratings go! (KKWD comes to mind....spun it for years after its release all the way to 2014!)
 
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I am curious as to how a station does poorly in the ratings. Usually if I notice a station playing something like Party Like a Rockstar that's not a rhythmic station, sure enough...down its ratings go!!
Ratings success are not based on a few songs. A station is "liked" enough to create frequent listening visits based on everything from "givens" like signal and sound quality to how the segues from one song to another are done... and the morning show... and the voices the rest of the day... and the overall mix of songs from different years and periods.

In most cases, satisfaction is based on the overall flavor of the music over a 15 to 20 minute to one hour period, not just the individual songs. We set up our sweeps and hours to have the right balance and variety in styles, tempos, artists, eras and the like so that there is "perceived variety"* as well as a consistency in flavor and sound.

* The first thing that a programmer discovers when they are exposed to research is that "variety" does not mean "lots of songs"; it means "only songs I like a lot with none I dislike". "Variety" is not about quantity, it is about quality.
 
i played that one and gangnam style in the last month too lol
You own a radio station in Alaska, correct? You were saying that you did a lot of work by yourself around the station.
Do you get listener requests for “Who Let the Dogs Out” or “ Party Like A Rockstar” or “Gagnam Style”?
If bigger stations do extensive audience surveys , are they willing to share some information with smaller stations?
Would you consider your format to be Adult Cobtemporary? Than you😊
 
You own a radio station in Alaska, correct? You were saying that you did a lot of work by yourself around the station.
Do you get listener requests for “Who Let the Dogs Out” or “ Party Like A Rockstar” or “Gagnam Style”?
If bigger stations do extensive audience surveys , are they willing to share some information with smaller stations?
Would you consider your format to be Adult Cobtemporary? Than you😊
Jumping in before SRG responds... he administers a community station that is loosely like a public station in "Lower 48". It's in a small community that has, if I read the data correctly, a high Native American population and a lifestyle that is very different than, let's say, Barstow (to name an isolated community in California). But he also does the announcing for a shift in one of the nationally distributed radio formats as well as a couple of smaller market independents.

So he has a variety of experiences every day, plus an interesting career in different markets across the country.
 
You own a radio station in Alaska, correct? You were saying that you did a lot of work by yourself around the station.
Do you get listener requests for “Who Let the Dogs Out” or “ Party Like A Rockstar” or “Gagnam Style”?
If bigger stations do extensive audience surveys , are they willing to share some information with smaller stations?
Would you consider your format to be Adult Cobtemporary? Than you😊

I dont own it, i manage it. Were public radio.

I get requests for all kinds of stuff, usualyl country and rock
 
I dont own it, i manage it. Were public radio.

I get requests for all kinds of stuff, usualyl country and rock
Are there any other OTA choices for popular music of any genre where you are? I assume there are few if any, which means your audience is probably used to an occasional Gangnam Style or Who Let the Dogs Out, even when they are played among country and rock songs. In a situation like yours, doing even rudimentary music research sounds like severe overthinking. Just knowing that what you play is, or once was, very popular is probably sufficient.
 
I dont own it, i manage it. Were public radio.

I get requests for all kinds of stuff, usualyl country and rock
Well, that sounds interesting and I take back you shouldn't play it! I always thought public stations were more hipster-ish though! I'm more complaining about cynical corporate playlists that pass over many good songs and then go ahead and play it!
 
Well, that sounds interesting and I take back you shouldn't play it! I always thought public stations were more hipster-ish though! I'm more complaining about cynical corporate playlists that pass over many good songs and then go ahead and play it!

Most of my background of my 20 year broadcast career is commercial, small town, upbeat radio stations.. not public radio.... and i use what i learned in commercial radio to make us a FUN public radio station
 
Are there any other OTA choices for popular music of any genre where you are? I assume there are few if any, which means your audience is probably used to an occasional Gangnam Style or Who Let the Dogs Out, even when they are played among country and rock songs. In a situation like yours, doing even rudimentary music research sounds like severe overthinking. Just knowing that what you play is, or once was, very popular is probably sufficient.
Nope, KSKO and a religious translator on 94.3 are it..... and thats a conservative not fun upbeat religious translator.
 
Cool. Could you play "Kiss Me Thru the Phone" some day, just for tall_guy? ;)

I'll look for it tomorrow and if i have it, ill play it.. im on 12-3 pm AK time.

I really have zero musical limits.

We're not a musical disaster all the time.. often times its some form of rock music in the afternoons, but sometimes i liek to be adventerous
 
I'll look for it tomorrow and if i have it, ill play it.. im on 12-3 pm AK time.

I really have zero musical limits.

We're not a musical disaster all the time.. often times its some form of rock music in the afternoons, but sometimes i liek to be adventerous
I listened to your show today ! I liked your selection of oldies, including Rita Coolidge, "Your Love is Lifting Me Higher", which is a cover ( I think) of a Jackie Wilson song. And I looked at your website, with the very well done graphic of your logo in Pacific Northwest Native American style, kind of like an image on a totem. Nice artwork. You're doing a great job :) -- Daryl
 
Cool. Could you play "Kiss Me Thru the Phone" some day, just for tall_guy? ;)

@CTListener @tall_guy1 coming up in 10 minutes after the 3pm station ID.. normalyl we have someone on 12-4.. but i have no one to cover 2-3 or 3-4 todayt so its just automation 3-4
 
@CTListener @tall_guy1 coming up in 10 minutes after the 3pm station ID.. normalyl we have someone on 12-4.. but i have no one to cover 2-3 or 3-4 todayt so its just automation 3-4

If you didn't hear it, i can promise you i played it.. as seen on our recently played list:

 
Believe me, you shouldn't have. 😖😏 Looks interesting the rest of the playlist though.

I';ve played garth brooks, weird al and judas priest back to back here because thats what was requested by 3 different people.

"you shouldnt have" "You wont".. "other stations never have" dont stop me. what do i have if im not local and unique?
 
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